Wednesday, November 28, 2018

Life presents us with many challenges. Some of us are met with those challenges from birth. Others find obstacles later in life in jobs or relationships. Regardless of your status in this world, there will be roadblocks before you.

What we'll be judged on is how we met those challenges, facing them head-on. Sometimes it's alone. Other times, it's with those we've gathered around us. One young man followed that path and years later, was met with the ultimate irony.

"Success comes to the lowly and to the poorly talented, but the special characteristic of a great person is to triumph over the disasters and panics of human life."

Monday, November 26, 2018

Don't let your self-worth be dictated by self-reflection alone; like a Black Mirror episode, China may require social credits to travel; what needs to happen before electric vehicles can take over the world; machine learning versus humans in digital ad campaigns — who won?; another retail bankruptcy, another ____; Facebook needs to stop digging; LinkedIn is going all Insta; traditional cable is hurting; are podcasts on track to kill radio?; Amazon suffered a dara breach before Black Friday; data scientists say marketers are clueless; Terry Gross' tips on how to talk to people; the podcast pick of the week may leave you with more questions than answers; and so much more in the Cyber Insecurity edition of The Full Monty for the week of November 26, 2018.

The Full Monty makes you smarter faster, by curating the essential business intelligence every week. Links are below with commentary in italics. Please sign up for our email updates to make sure you don't miss a thing.

It got me to thinking about how we can misjudge our own abilities, both underestimating and overestimating ourselves.

Talented people don't use their strengths to their fullest, and often it's because we don't understand what we do well. Then again, if we're regularly giving and getting feedback, it should help to square us to reality.

I'll have more thoughts on this in my weekly dose of Timeless Wisdom (make sure you're signed up for that, okay?).

About this week's image:The Incredulity of Saint Thomas by Caravaggio depicts the scene in which Thomas, one of the disciples of Jesus, who said that he wouldn't believe in the resurrection unless he touched the wounds. This gave rise to the phrase 'doubting Thomas,' or a skeptic who needs firsthand experience before they'll believe something.

How UPS uses A.I. to deliver holiday gifts in the worst weather. UPS built an online platform called Network Planning Tools (NPT) that uses machine learning and analytics to help the company's engineers avoid bad weather and other issues as they route package deliveries. UPS expects to save $100-200 million per year. (MIT Technology Review)

As A.I.-building frameworks get open-sourced, DIY tinkerers use them for tasks like identifying plant diseases, automating dry-cleaning, making art, and more. (Wired)

Retail Apocalypse

Humans are a transactional species, and the practice — if not the very notion of what retail is — is undergoing a historical metamorphosis.

Black Friday is the busiest time of the year for professional line sitters, who make up to $45 an hour. (Money) I had no idea this was a job. I could have been writing the newsletter from there. Or you could be supporting it on Patreon.

David's Bridal is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy as it's — say it with me now — "saddled with hundreds of millions of dollars in debt from a private-equity buyout." (USA Today) When competing against newer players like Rent the Runway, it’s hard to see them thriving.

Who's the dominant player in ecommerce? If you said Amazon with its 300 million customers, you'd be wrong. It's Alibaba, with 618 million customers in its native China. (Forbes) The two are on the cutting edge of all things digital, and that goes beyond ecommerce.

"Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others." – Cicero

Platforms

News to know about relevant social, virtual, and augmented reality platforms that may affect your business.

Fᴀᴄᴇʙᴏᴏᴋ / Iɴsᴛᴀɢʀᴀᴍ / WʜᴀᴛsAᴘᴘ

The U.K. Parliament seized a cache of internal documents from Facebook as CEO Mark Zuckerberg refused to answer questions of members of Parliament. The documents are alleged to contain revelations on data and privacy controls that led to the Cambridge Analytica scandal. So much for an open and more connected world. (The Guardian) Tell us more about making the world more open and connected, Mark.

Some pundits are calling for Zuckerberg to relinquish his chairman title at the very least. "He’s shown that he’s incapable of leading the broken behemoth that is Facebook." (Washington Post)

Just six percent of bots on Twitter accounted for 31 percent of bad information. (Ars Technica) We've long known that a lie is halfway around the world before the truth is getting out of bed. But the current speed at which misinformation moves on Twitter is unprecedented.

Media

The latest in the world of streaming video, audio, and the advertising, pricing and bundling models related to them.Vɪᴅᴇᴏ

Cord-cutters are continuing to chip away at traditional cable and satellite TV, with one million cancelling in the last quarter. Households are turning to the Internet for streaming options, and finding plenty of good programming to keep them. (Wall Street Journal)

"It seems the humble podcast, once the realm of rambling hosts and public radio personalities, is getting seriously into business." Will podcasts to kill radio with this kind of momentum? (Fortune) Not until radio is disconnected from the car.

Program of the Week: We all know what happened at midnight on December 31, 1999. But in the months leading up, we were uncertain. Surviving Y2K has the stories of how people reacted and prepared in those crazy times. If you're on the fence about listening, this piece from Vulture will put you over the edge.

Please subscribe to The Full Monty podcast, our own 5-minute weekly business commentary.Try this at home: "Alexa, play the latest episode of The Full Monty."

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Privacy / Security / Regulatory

Business disruptions in the legal, regulatory, and computer security fields, from hacking to the on-demand economy and more.Pʀɪᴠᴀᴄʏ / Sᴇᴄᴜʀɪᴛʏ / Hᴀᴄᴋɪɴɢ

The U.S. Postal Service just fixed a security weakness that allowed anyone who has an account at usps.com to view account details for some 60 million other users, and in some cases to modify account details on their behalf. (Krebs on Security)

Speaking Engagements

Always looking for recommendations for venues to share my stories. I connect our digital selves with classical influences, pointing out the universal human truths that can unlock the secret of retaining and growing customer relationships. Feel free to contact me to discuss speaking to your organization or at an event you've been to recently where you think I might stand out.SPECIAL OFFER: from now through the end of 2018, I'll be offering a discount for up to five subscribers of The Full Monty. Book me to speak in 2019, and I'll speak to your group for 30 percent off my normal rate. Let's have a call to discuss it.

Mental Nourishment

Other links to help you reflect, improve, or simply learn something new.

Wednesday, November 21, 2018

Saying "thank you" just seems like a given. Or it used to. Someone bestows a gift of some sort on us, and we reply with our gratitude. But did you ever consider that expressing gratitude is a gift itself?

We have the opportunity to impact those closest to us with respect and consideration, connecting with them on a deeper level. And it is partly through gratitude that we can deepen those relationships.

Monday, November 19, 2018

Facebook's leadership loses face; Harvard will school Congress on A.I.; autonomous vehicles may mean changing real estate norms; Lime's oh-so-Silicon Valley announcement; Amazon is reaping more ad dollars; the role of opposition research firms in business; Walmart slides into the #3 ecommerce slot; in-store and digital retail go hand-in-hand; Twitter might get an edit button; Netflix might get ads; podcasts are a seductive way to do storytelling; running cybersecurity without cyber; buying safe and secure products this holiday season; it's rewards time in ride-sharing; protecting data is a top priority for CMOs; why random acts of kindness work for all of us; starting a gratitude journal; plus the podcast pick of the week and so much more in the Zuck Stops Here edition of The Full Monty for the week of November 19, 2018.

Announcements

Happy Thanksgiving if you're celebrating this week. I'm thankful that you welcome me into your inbox each week.

Top Story

The company that knows all about you doesn't want you to know all about it.

Last week we learned just how far Facebook would (and allegedly) did go to keep its secrets under wraps. As if trust in Facebook wasn't already at an all-time low (and that's saying something), this seems to have finally set off alarm bells in Washington that Big Tech cannot be trusted.

"the parent or inventor of an art is not always the best judge of the utility or inutility of his own inventions to the users of them."

And that by giving them the written word

"you give your disciples not truth, but only the semblance of truth; they will be hearers of many things and will have learned nothing; they will appear to be omniscient and will generally know nothing; they will be tiresome company, having the show of wisdom without the reality."

About this week's image:David Garrick as Richard III by William Hogarth depicts Garrick, greatest British actor of the 18th century, in the title role of Shakespeare's play of the same name. He is shown above in the tent scene before the Battle of Bosworth, haunted by the ghosts of all those he had murdered.

Harvard researchers will educate Congress on A.I. The initiative is meant to study A.I. ethics and regulation, and will incorporate the opinions of 30 experts in computer science, philosophy, economics, and other fields. (MIT Technology Review) God knows they need it.

The most desirable office space used to be located close to talent, urban amenities and transportation. But if AVs are done right, people might not mind commuting longer. (Forbes) Interesting thought that's a counter-point to the prediction that by 2050, 70 percent of populations will live in urban areas. Perhaps the new mantra of real estate is "Location, location...transmission"?

Communications / Marketing / Business Strategy

U.S. advertisers will spend $4.61 billion on Amazon, or about 4.1 percent of all digital ad spending in the country. About 80 percent plan to increase their Amazon ad budgets next year and nearly one in five will increase budgets by 50 percent or more. (eMarketer) Expect this trend to continue as Amazon gains ground...

Snap says it has responded to subpoenas from the Department of Justice and Securities and Exchange Commission about its IPO, following a suit alleging Snap misled the public on how Instagram affected its growth

Media

The latest in the world of streaming video, audio, and the advertising, pricing and bundling models related to them.Vɪᴅᴇᴏ

Speaking of hearing, listen to this episode. It's the most personal and emotionally raw episode I've ever recorded.

My favorite podcast player Pocket Casts just got an upgrade. Now you can play episodes without subscribing and discover shows that matter to you, which may lead to a bigger adoption curve of podcast consumption. (The Verge) Well worth the $3.99.

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Privacy / Security / Regulatory

Business disruptions in the legal, regulatory, and computer security fields, from hacking to the on-demand economy and more.Pʀɪᴠᴀᴄʏ / Sᴇᴄᴜʀɪᴛʏ / Hᴀᴄᴋɪɴɢ

The minister in charge of Japan's cybersecurity efforts says he has never used a computer. (New York Times) Well, sure. That's the only way to be certain you're 100 percent secure.

More than 50 nations signed onto the Paris Call for Trust and Security in Cyberspace. (Axios) Guess who wasn't on that list? Hint: other nations that didn't sign include North Korea, Russia, Iran, and China.

Check out the three-part video series “Operation InfeKtion” that reveals the ways in which one of the Soviets’ central tactics — the promulgation of lies about America — continues today. (The New York Times) Episodes include "The KGB Spies Who Invented Fake News," "The Seven Commandments of Fake News" and "The Worldwide War on Truth".

Rᴇɢᴜʟᴀᴛᴏʀʏ / Oɴ-Dᴇᴍᴀɴᴅ Eᴄᴏɴᴏᴍʏ

Uber announced growth in revenue and bookings, with a net loss of $1.07 billion. The company plans to go public next year, but has yet to turn a profit. (Axios)

Uber Rewards is a new loyalty program from Uber that creates incentives to use the app. (TechCrunch) Smart play by Uber here. It's akin to an airline loyalty program, and gives users tangible reasons to stick with Uber.

What's the difference between data lakes and data warehouses? (IBM Big Data & Analytics Hub) Depends on whether you're using a fishing pole or a forklift.

Technology is becoming increasingly important for marketers, and nowhere is that seen more starkly than budgets. Martech investments are increasing: 29 percent of budgets will be allocated to marketing technology next year, up from 22 percent this year. (eMarketer)

Speaking Engagements

Always looking for recommendations for venues to share my stories. I connect our digital selves with classical influences, pointing out the universal human truths that can unlock the secret of retaining and growing customer relationships. Feel free to contact me to discuss speaking to your organization or at an event you've been to recently where you think I might stand out.SPECIAL OFFER: from now through the end of 2018, I'll be offering a discount for up to five subscribers of The Full Monty. Book me to speak in 2019, and I'll speak to your group for 30 percent off my normal rate. Let's have a call to discuss it.

Mental Nourishment

Other links to help you reflect, improve, or simply learn something new.

Monday, November 12, 2018

Humanity beats technology (until it doesn't); A.I. isn't magic dust for your business; the variations in ethics of self-driving cars around the world; tech consultants are putting ad agencies on notice; why virality is less effective than word of mouth; Amazon's slow-growth grocery strategy has sparked competition; Yelp is yelping; Twitter and Facebook continue to battle trolls and suspect accounts; the cord-cutting continues, with 1.1 million households dumping cable in Q2; strong areas of growth ahead for podcasting; companies may be held to account for data privacy violations, and agency executives may be on the hook; mo data, mo problems; food innovation origins; tips on being well-liked and irresistible; plus the podcast pick of the week and so much more in the Breathe edition of The Full Monty for the week of November 12, 2018.

Instead, how about stepping away from or putting away the screen? We might just observe something. Or reconnect more deeply with a loved one. Or learn a little patience along the way.

Breathe. Smell the flowers. Enjoy each other. It's something technology can't do or help you to do.

About this week's image: On May 12, 1863, in the company of the journalist and explorer Fitz Hugh Ludlow, Albert Bierstadt departed on his second trip to the West. They camped in the Yosemite Valley, where Bierstadt captured a number of scenes of natural beauty. This painting depicts the huge jagged naturally occurring peaks that dwarf the figures in the foreground. Once again, nature towers over man.

Speaking Engagements

Always looking for recommendations for venues to share my stories. I connect our digital selves with classical influences, pointing out the universal human truths that can unlock the secret of retaining and growing customer relationships. Feel free to contact me to discuss speaking to your organization or at an event you've been to recently where you think I might stand out.

IDEA: if you're looking to save some of your training and development budget and don't feel like sending multiple members of your team to a conference (high prices, time away from the office, questionable content), I've got an option for you: bring me in for a roundtable experience with your team for an hour or a half day.

Artificial Intelligence / Autonomous

According to a new report by Deloitte Insights, the industry is moving from an era of connected A.I. to "pervasive" A.I. The report said that the number of devices with embedded A.I. is expected to increase from 79 million last year to 1.2 billion in 2023. With the embedded devices, A.I. will no longer need internet connectivity to function, according to the report, which will open up new opportunities for industries. (TechRepublic) The machines are getting smarter. Are we?

"With a few adjustments, autocracy is quite compatible with the internet age…In today’s digital world, in China and the West alike, power comes from controlling data, making sense of it, and using it to influence how people behave." The A.I. Cold War with China Threatens Us All. (Wired) Just think how a few tweets control us now...

Researchers argue that self-driving cars will have an unforeseen impact on the hospitality industry. Traditional hotels could see a decline in customers as travelers opt to sleep in their cars, restaurants could go mobile and yes, even brothels could take advantage of autonomous vehicle technology. (TechSpot) It’s a good thing Dennis Hof didn’t live to see his election victory in Nevada.

Instacart is also following a trend: it has introduced Instacart Pickup, giving consumers an option to avoid delivery and the associated fee and instead pick up their own groceries. (VentureBeat) This hybrid model has seen lots of uptake from the likes of Walmart, Kroger and others and serves as a gateway to online grocery shopping.

One neat thing: I've been trying out Ibotta, which gives you real cash back on items you buy at a number of stores, from Whole Foods to CVS, Amazon, Kroger and more. You can scan a receipt, use the mobile app, or link it with your loyalty cards. Check it out.

"Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others." – Cicero

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Platforms

News to know about relevant social, virtual, and augmented reality platforms that may affect your business.

Fᴀᴄᴇʙᴏᴏᴋ / Iɴsᴛᴀɢʀᴀᴍ / WʜᴀᴛsAᴘᴘ

Facebook says that it has improved at removing terrorist content. In the second and third quarters of 2018, it removed 12.4 million pieces of content endorsing or promoting groups like ISIS and al-Qaeda. (CNBC)

The ingredients of a weaponized social media platform are features shared by every such platform from WhatsApp to Facebook to Twitter, and whatever catches on next. (Wired) They all trade on how the human brain is built. In some ways, it's not the social networks that are weaponized, it's humans.

Disney's new Netflix rival is called Disney+ and will debut in late 2019. (CNBC) Disney has the ability to create a strong offering, including navigation that is unique to Disney+, thanks to the vertical and horizontal nature of its content.

Spotify debuted its first analytics tool aimed at publishers. The tool will offer daily streaming stats, including playlist performance, and view data across all the songwriters on their roster. (TechCrunch)

Program of the Week: Our pick this week is Imagined Life from Wondery. An immersive journey through the surprising moments and challenges that shaped someone’s life before they were famous. Clues are dropped along the way, but only at the end will you discover who 'you' are. A longer variation on our opening stories of The Full Monty podcast.

And don't forget about The Full Monty podcast, our own 5-minute weekly business commentary. Try this: "Alexa, play the latest episode of The Full Monty."

Privacy / Security / Regulatory

Business disruptions in the legal, regulatory, and computer security fields, from hacking to the on-demand economy and more.Pʀɪᴠᴀᴄʏ / Sᴇᴄᴜʀɪᴛʏ / Hᴀᴄᴋɪɴɢ

Yahoo has agreed to a $50 million fine in connection with the 2013 data breach that exposed information from all 3 billion of its user accounts. (Digital Trends) That's only 1.6¢ per user, for those of you doing the math.

Company executives could go to jail for misusing data under proposed U.S. data privacy law. The GDPR-style federal legislation also provides penalties of up to 4% of a company's annual income. (MarTech Today)

What do third-party trackers know about us? 5,300 rows and 46 columns of data for a single user in one week. (Privacy International) But there's a lot of messy data, and without structure or cleaning, it's a bunch of useless information. And that's another challenge for companies.